2003 BMW 3 Series Latches, locks and linkages Problems
- Complaints
- 4about this part
- Share
- 5%of 73 total for the year
- Median mileage
- 120,000miles
- Trend
- Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.
NHTSA recorded 4 complaints about the latches, locks and linkages of the 2003 BMW 3 Series, 5% of the 73 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 120,000 miles.
Fewer than 15 complaints name this part, so treat the figures as a rough indication only.
Example complaints
Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
“Passenger doors would not unlock. All passengers could not get out of the car. Pulling on the door handles did not open or unlock the doors. Interior unlock buttons did not work. Unlock button on the key fob did not work. This is very common issue and can be very dangerous. 4 passengers had to crawl out the driver door.”
NHTSA complaint #10614828, filed 2014-07, 153,231 miles“The passenger side door lock will not work. The door stays locked and when it first occured the passenger had to crawl out the window. Neither the electronic key lock nor the pushbutton lock control on the console will open the door lock on the passenger side. All other locks work fine, including the trunk. The manual door opener will not open the passenger door either. This is extremely dangerous since, in the case of an accident, the passenger would be trapped in the vehicle.”
NHTSA complaint #10472119, filed 2012-08, 120,000 miles“Passenger side door and both rear doors failed to open. All three doors remained locked and could not be open from inside by using the mechanical handles. Neither the remote key nor the regular key was able to unlock the doors.”
NHTSA complaint #10439773, filed 2011-12, 90,000 miles“The general module 5 (gm5) is electronic hardware that amongst other functions primarily controls the locking and unlocking of the Bmw e46's. This module has decided to stop working in my vehicle making it impossible to unlock the vehicle from any of the possible options (key fob button, central locking button, or door double locking handle). This is an extreme safety hazard because in the case of an accident the passengers will not be able to quickly escape the vehicle due to inability of the doors to unlock. …”
NHTSA complaint #10532798, filed 2013-07Related service bulletins
- 10030626Oct 2, 2009Bmw vehicles: doors will not unlock using the key fob or central locking button. *pe updated1/4/10. *pe updated 5/24/10.
Latches, locks and linkages: other model years
Other parts of the 2003 BMW 3 Series
23 complaintsAir bags
21 complaintsElectrical system
12 complaintsBody and structure
5 complaintsSuspension
4 complaintsTransmission and drivetrain
4 complaintsBrakes
3 complaintsEngine cooling
3 complaintsFuel system
3 complaintsTires
3 complaintsEngine
2 complaintsVisibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)
2 complaints
← All problems reported for the 2003 BMW 3 Series
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 31, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.
To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology